23/10/2025
I thought I was done with the hard work… but that belief was my downfall.
Ego checks aren’t fun, but they’re necessary.
The moments when life humbles you, when things don’t go the way you planned, or when you realise you’ve been playing it safe… those are the turning points.
A year ago, I changed my environment. At first it felt like the best move I could’ve made — fresh surroundings, a clean slate, new opportunities. But slowly, without realising it, I slipped into comfort.
I told myself I had already done the hard work. That I’d gone through the personal development, built the discipline, learned the lessons. Now it was time to “work smart, not hard.” I believed I had all the tools — and in some ways, I did. But that mindset led me to take my foot off the gas. I stopped testing myself, because deep down I thought I was already “ready.”
A few weeks ago, reality hit me. I realised I wasn’t pushing anymore. I wasn’t uncomfortable. I wasn’t growing. And that was the wake-up call I needed.
As Ryan Holiday reminds us, “Ego is the enemy of what you want and of what you have.” Another line that stuck with me: “Impressing people is utterly different from being truly impressive.”
Lately I’ve been asking myself:
• Am I really pushing myself, or am I just repeating what feels safe?
• Have I mistaken comfort for progress?
• What’s the discomfort I’m avoiding, and what would happen if I leaned into it instead?
• Who would I become if I stopped letting my ego protect me from failure?
These questions sting, but they also awaken something powerful. They remind me that the moments where my ego feels bruised are the same moments that invite me to level up.
At the end of the day, ego isn’t the enemy — comfort is. And the only way forward is through discomfort, through the unknown, through the risk of failure. That’s where growth lives.
